Daily Republican., 1887-11-29
STREET PAVING.
some Interesting Facts About tho Bes
material For Paving Streets-How til.
Work is Done In London ana Paris.

The following interesting letter from
James Spear, Philadeiphian, to Tn
Evening Call Of that city contains som,
facts which are worthy of careful study
beg to make through the columns O
your paper few comparisons of thu
streets OF London and Paris with hose O
Philadelphia. In 1873 the metropolitan
Board OF Public Works in London was ex
perimentirg with The wood pavement, ,ant
To-day all the principal streets of the cit,
are laid ip wood.
8All the streets, where the traffic is the
heaviest, have wood pavements and the
cross streets are laid In asphalt or are
macadanized.
During my visit this year to London !
travelled over 500 hundred miles of streets
and failed to ses single cobblestone
pavement. London has been entirely re.
paved within the last fifteen years. The
same can be said of Paris, where the cob
piestone pavements and the Belgian block
paVements have given way to wood and
aspaal t,although the principal streets are
iaid In wood and In the most substan tial
manner. The old pavements are re-
moved to the depth of eighteen inches and
then filled in with good, clean gravel. On
Nils there is laid gravel mixed with ce-
ment, and ten ton roller is passed over
II which will show any weak parts in the
foundation. On the top of the founda
tion is laid an asphalt coating as smooth
as floor. This forms the foundation for
the wood, which is cut in blocks 6xlO
and three inches wide, These blocks are
soaked in tar, then dried and laid in
regular rows, the small cracks being
hlled In with bitumen or coal tar. On
the top of this is sprinkled well screened
gravel the size of bean, which is pressed
into the ends Of the wood by a heavy
roller passing over 1t, making q paveMent
on which horses will not slip and 1t is en-
tirely free from noise. You cannot hear
any rumble of the wheels of carriages,
The advantages gained from such a pave
ment may be summed up as follows:
First. 1t is smooth and easily cleaned
There are no dust, dirt or ashes working
up through the spaces between the blocks
of wood.
Second One horse will draw as much
on such pavement as four horses could
draw over cobblestone pavement.
Third. The rapidity with which horses
can pass over these pavements shortens
their distance from ally part of the city
one-third ia time.
Fourth. The wear and tear on carri
ages is reduced to minimum, and the
saving to owners Of horses aud carriages
would average rs per cent. over such
streets as you have in Philadelphia, or in
the cost OF keeping carriages in repair.
To show how scrupulously clean the
streets of Paris are Kept, one morning 1 |
saw a woman dipping water out of the
gutter into bucket for family use. This
was on Fanbourg St. Honore.
On crossing over the street to see the
operation l noticed that the water was as
clear as crystal and much more inviting
to drink than the water that was drawn
from our hydrants in Philadelphia last
winter, and this street is much more
crowded with vehicles than our Ches nut
street.
In London the Metropolitan Board of
Public Works sprinkle the streets and
clean them daily. In Philadelphia the
streets are never clean. The Municipality
of Paris sprinkle the streets, and they are
cleaned every morning before 10 O'Clock